Anne Bledsoe France, 'Annie B,' was NASCAR's first secretary-treasurer and the financial backbone of the sport's founding. While Big Bill promoted the races, she kept the books, managed the ticket office, and made sure the bills were paid – colleagues joked she kept two sets of books, one to keep Bill from spending them out of business.
She died of a stroke in January 1992 at 87, five months before her husband. In 2015 she received NASCAR's inaugural Landmark Award, long-overdue recognition as the woman who made the business work.
At a Glance
- Born: October 27, 1904, Nathan's Creek, North Carolina
- Died: January 2, 1992, Daytona Beach, Florida
- Age: 87
- Cause of death: Stroke brought on by heart problems
Final Resting Place
Hillside Cemetery, Ormond Beach, Florida.
Photo: from Howard Wear's collection
From the Book
This profile is adapted from Legends at Rest: NASCAR Legends by Howard Wear.
Portrait: from Howard Wear’s collection. Grave photo: Photo: from Howard Wear's collection.